The pursuit of Ollie Watkins was ‘not unanimous’ at Arsenal before Mikel Arteta’s ‘stance won out’ with the Aston Villa striker ‘excited’ at the prospect of joining. Arsenal were keen to bring in another attacker before the transfer deadline with the Gunners looking at a number of options before eventually make an offer for Aston Villa’s Watkins.

Arsenal remain interested in finalising a deal for Aston Villa forward Ollie Watkins before the end of Transfer Deadline Day. The Gunners lodged an enquiry to sign Watkins last week, but their initial offer of €48 million (£40m) was immediately rebuffed by Unai Emery’s side.

Ollie Watkins is ‘open’ to joining Arsenal before the transfer deadline if Aston Villa back down and agree a deal with the Gunners. The future of England striker Watkins looks set to be one of the biggest talking points in the final few days of the transfer window after he was the subject of a big-money offer from Arsenal.